Title dreams still on the line for Rodriguez

Published 1:00 am, Thursday, March 5, 2009

But the Danbury welterweight's dreams of battling for a world championship are still very much on the line tonight.

Rodriguez, the fourth-ranked contender in the IBF, will take on No. 15 Shamone Alvarez (21-1-0, 11 KOs) in defense of his USBA championship belt on ESPN2's "Friday Night Fights" at the Mohegan Sun. The network's broadcast starts at 8:30 with Rodriguez (23-2-2, 14 KOs) expected to take the ring around 9.

"Shamone is a very strong guy, a good fighter," Rodriguez said from his training camp in Kerhonkson, N.Y. "But he only knows one way to fight. He can't adjust. He likes to keep coming forward and I'll be ready to meet him."

While Rodriguez's left jab and right cross might be locked and loaded for Alvarez's bullish approach, how invested, both mentally and emotionally, the 28-year-old is in Friday's bout remains to be seen.

Initially, Rodriguez was told this fight would be a rematch with the IBF's third-ranked contender Isaac Hlatshwayo in another IBF title eliminator.

Rodriguez battled to a draw in a title eliminator with the South African in his native country last November.

With the top two contending seeds in the IBF currently empty, the winner was to be guaranteed the top-contender spot and a shot at the IBF championship belt and its current holder Joshua Clottey.

Hlatshwayo, however, refused to come to Connecticut and the IBF decided Rodriguez would fight Alvarez, but only in defense of his USBA belt.

"When I found out it wasn't going to be a title-eliminator, I was ready to cut it and go home," said Rodriguez, a native of the Dominican Republic. "I've gone through all this work and now I've got no shot at title."

But Rodriguez is fighting for a title.

In addition to trying to maintain his hold on the USBA belt, which he won last July with his knockout of Oscar Diaz in San Antonio, Rodriguez also needs a win to keep his chances of fighting for the IBF championship alive.

A loss to the 32-year-old Alvarez would likely drop Rodriguez well out of the title picture while a win on national television could catapult him above Hlatshwayo in the IBF rankings, especially considering he refused a rematch.

A strong showing on ESPN2 could also allow Rodriguez, who is ranked No. 10 in ESPN's world welterweight rankings, a chance to lobby for a title shot with the WBO, WBC, or WBA.

"What we've tried to remind Delvin is the best thing, and the only thing, he can do is win," Rodriguez's manager Stan Hoffman said. "If he continues to do that things will fall into place. Delvin is a championship fighter and he will get his chance."

First, however, he's got to beat Alvarez, a tough left-hander, whose only loss came against Clottey in a title eliminator back in November of 2007.

"All of Delvin's sparring has been against southpaws," Hoffman said. "We had some good sparring that's given a really good look of what we are up against."

Rodriguez is also excited about fighting in his home state, especially after traveling to South Africa and Texas, respectively, for his last two fights.

"It going to be great," Rodriguez said. "I know I'm going to have a lot of people behind me and I plan to put on a show."

Even Alvarez, a native of Atlantic City, N.J., is looking forward to the atmosphere at the Mohegan Sun Arena.

"I know he'll have his peeps there," Alvarez said. "It's going to be a fun, electric atmosphere with ESPN there. What more could you want. It's going to be a great fight."